Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid is confident in his team entering the postseason even though several players have been banged up down the stretch.
"I don't like this whole notion that we're the walking wounded here," McDavid told reporters Tuesday. "We're ready to roll."
The Oilers iced a significantly undermanned lineup in Monday's 5-0 loss to the Los Angeles Kings. Edmonton was without McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman, Trent Frederic, Mattias Ekholm, Jake Walman, and Troy Stecher, among others.
McDavid skated in three games following his eight-game absence due to a lower-body injury but sat out Monday for rest.
"I've felt, personally, night and day from before the injury," McDavid said.
McDavid, Draisaitl, Hyman, Walman, and Stecher are all expected to be available for Game 1 of the postseason. Frederic is considered questionable. Ekholm, though, is out through the opening round against the Kings.
There's also a chance the Oilers could be without Darnell Nurse to begin the playoffs. The defenseman has a hearing with the Department of Player Safety on Tuesday night for cross-checking Kings forward Quinton Byfield on Monday.
Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch added Monday that winger Evander Kane, who's missed the entire season, is "looking good," according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. However, it's up to team medical staff to clear Kane.
"I just don't like the theory that people are counting us out," McDavid said. "We're a great team here. Bumps and bruises along the way, obviously. But we're a dangerous team when we're rolling and healthy. And we are healthy."
The Oilers, reigning Western Conference champions, are aiming to defeat the Kings in Round 1 for the fourth consecutive year.
